The Aftermath
by emeraldwolfeyes
Summary: After Harry Potter defeats HeWhoMustNotBeNamed, everyone thinks that life will go back to normal. But what is normal in the wizarding world? This is a fic about the Aftermath of the War between Good and Evil. My first attempt at a fanfic, please read a
1. The Trial

"Bellatrix Lestrange. You have been brought in front of the Wizengamot on the serious charges of murder, torture and affiliating yourself with the Dark Arts. You have been accused of using the Unforgivable Curses in situations that cannot be declared as 'self-defence' and of being in close contact with He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named, without notifying the Ministry of Magic. How do you plea?"

It was a warm summer afternoon in the middle of July; just one month after Harry Potter had defeated Lord Voldemort. Harry himself was sitting in the crowd of onlookers at Bellatrix Lestrange's trial, a look of content on his face. Ron Weasley sat on his left, holding hands with Hermione Granger. Harry's two best friends smiled at him then turned back to the trial at hand. Harry looked to his right, studying the face of the person sitting next to him. Neville Longbottom's round, normally friendly face was impassive. Harry sighed and looked past Neville, to the love of his life, the most beautiful redhead he had ever laid eyes on. Ginny Weasley was staring up at Bellatrix with a look of mingled hate and disgust. She turned her head to Harry and gave a quick smile, before looking back up at the podium. She and Harry had decided that they would sit apart for this particular trial and Harry had invited Neville to sit next to him in her place. They both knew that he needed support on this day, for it was this Death Eater who had inflicted almost as much pain on Neville's life as Voldemort had on Harry's. Harry sighed and turned back to the trial.

"Bellatrix Lestrange. Answer the Wizengamot. How do you plea?"

"I don't plea to blood traitors, Half-bloods and Mudbloods such as yourselves! I have pride in my pure blood! The blood in my veins comes from The Noble and Most Ancient House of Black!" Bellatrix screeched. Her face was contorted in glee; she looked insane.

"Mrs. Lestrange. The purity of your blood does not matter to the Wizengamot. Your sentence will not be altered in accordance of your ancestry. Neither will the outcome of this trial. Now how do you plead?" Tykan Smidgskin glared down at Bellatrix. He could not stand Death Eaters. He was a Pureblood himself, but his wife was born to Muggles, meaning his children were Half-bloods. He hated the causes Lord Voldemort and his followers had stood for. Smidgskin was pleased to be Chief Warlock of the Wizengamot. He was hard on the Death Eaters, and he had a right to be. They had destroyed the lives of every single person in the world. Sadness was a chain effect, for once one person's loved one was killed or tortured, their sadness wore off on their friends, whose sadness wore off on their friends. And there had been many deaths, oh yes, many deaths. Many people, Muggle and wizard alike, had lost ones they loved. The Death Eaters had also suffered, even if the world hated to admit it. The Dark Lord never hesitated to kill off his followers if they spited him, and the Aurors killed many others. Yes, the Death Eaters had suffered, but Smidgskin did not think that they had suffered enough and he was in a position to do something about it. He gave life in prison for the lot of them, although he personally thought that they should get worse.

Harry laughed inwardly at Smidgskin's thoughts. Last year, in his seventh year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, several members of the Order of the Phoenix had privately tutored Harry. He had been taught Legilimency and surprised all by how fast he caught on, considering his Occlumency attempts. He quickly became one of the most accomplished Legilimenses of all time. So accomplished, in fact, that he could delve into the minds of others without having eye contact with them.

"Mrs. Lestrange. We will ask only once more. If you give up your right to a fair trial, we will find you guilty on all counts. Now how do you plea?"

"You don't understand, do you?" she asked, with the air of one superior to another. "Even if Potter here," she sneered at Harry, who raised his eyebrows, "defeated the Dark Lord, he has not defeated the Death Eaters! There will be a new Dark Lord; we'll always be here. You can't stop us. Do you feel safe now, because he's gone? Your security will not last, I will rule, or my dear brother-in-law, Lucius, will rule. I'm right in saying that you haven't caught him yet, aren't I? Yes? Well then, let me have the honour of re-introducing you!"

There was a flash of light as the doors banged open on either side of the chamber. The Death Eaters stormed in, throwing curses at the spectators. Harry knew that these were the men yet to be captured. He drew his wand, but before he could utter a spell, a dozen of the Dark wizards were surrounding him, throwing curses. Ron, Hermione and Ginny threw spells back at the Death Eaters, trying to help Harry out. Harry looked around for Neville and found him in front of Bellatrix Lestrange.

Harry took one look at him and sighed. It would not be a good idea for anyone to try to free Lestrange. Neville was not about to let her get away from justice again. Harry went back to the task at hand.

Ginny's wrist was limp, it looked broken, but she was still firing spells at the Death Eaters with her good hand. Hermione was nursing a cut on her arm, but she too was still fighting. Ron was fine and Harry grinned when he saw him perform a perfect Petrificus Totalus! curse that sent his victim to the ground, stiff as a board. Harry was quickly reminded of the DA lessons he had held in his fifth year, where he had taught Ron that very spell.

"Stupefy!" Harry roared. How could this have happened? How could a bunch of people in cloaks and masks, known to anybody who was anybody in the Wizarding World as Death Eaters, slip into the Ministry of Magic undetected? Did they have inside help? Who was the traitor?

Harry sent another Stunning Spell at the Death Eaters. A very familiar drawl lazily said, "Protego!"

"Malfoy! Show yourself; let's settle this man to man!" Harry yelled to Malfoy Senior.

"You are no man, Potter. You are a boy. You only defeated the Dark Lord because he was vulnerable, he was weak, you are nothing but lucky. You are nothing, boy, nothing. And this time around, we will succeed in killing you!"

Hermione, Ron and Ginny were all held up in their own fights; they had drifted away from Harry, leaving him to battle five Death Eaters on his own. There was no one around to help him; everyone else was either fighting, hurt, or dead.

Across the room, Neville Longbottom was still standing in front of Bellatrix's chair. She was chained in and unable to move, but Neville did not want any of the Death Eaters getting close enough to untie her.

"Do you really think you can win, Longbottom? When I am free, you will be my victim. Potter was the Dark Lord's, but as he will be killed sooner or later, my goal will be you. You won't be hard to kill, but that's not my plan for you, boy. I'd rather you join your parents in St. Mungo' s. Every corner you turn, you'll see me and I'll get you in the end. I will be free soon enough and the games will begin."

"You wish," Neville replied, surprisingly calm as ever. Fighting the Dark Arts over the past four years had brought a great change in Neville. He was no longer the boy who always messed things up; he had turned into a very mature young man. He always kept his temper and his thinking was quick. He had helped the Order many times since he had come of age and for once in his life he was proud of himself, as were his friends and family. Neville saw the Death Eaters surround Harry; he knew his friend was getting tired. He bit his lip.

Harry needed help, but if Neville left Bellatrix would be out in the open, easy for the Death Eaters to get to. Neville watched as Harry defeated two of his pursuers. He saw him stumble, still firing his spells. Why wasn't anyone helping him? Didn't they care? But Neville knew his thoughts were unfair. There were many Death Eaters in the chamber and the people who were still able to fight were doing so.

"Someone help Harry!" Ginny shrieked. Neville turned towards her. Ginny had been the first girl he had ever liked. She was still so kind to him and he didn't want her to get hurt. She was one of his best friends. He knew that, if anything happened to Harry, her spirit would break. The Wizarding World needed Ginny. She was an inspiration to so many. He could not let the Death Eaters do that to her. Neville took one last look at Bellatrix and then hurried off to join the fight.

Harry looked around him. He had Stunned two of his enemies but three others remained and he knew Lucius Malfoy was one of them. He felt a bit dizzy and knew that his energy was running out.

Neville ran over to Harry. How many times had his friend saved him from situations like this? Harry was always there to help Neville and now was his chance to repay him.

"Incarcerous!" Neville pointed his wand at one of the Death Eaters, watching ropes fly from it and wrap themselves around the man.

"Impedimenta!" Harry and him called out at the same time, causing the two remaining Death Eaters to fly across the room.

"Thanks, Neville. One more minute of that and I would be a goner."

"No problem. Just returning the favour. Do you think they'll be waking up anytime soon?" he asked, staring at the Death Eaters.

One remained motionless, crumbled against the wall. The more fortunate Death Eater stood up, his mask sliding off his face. Lucius Malfoy turned to Harry and Neville, a triumphant look on his face.

"What are you so happy about, Malfoy? You're trapped!" Harry yelled, looking at Draco's father with disgust.

"Oh, no. No, no, no!" Neville was looking horror- struck, staring up at Malfoy.

"Neville, what's wrong? We have him, he can't get away."

But Neville was pointing up at Malfoy, his face now contorted in rage. "We sent him right to her! Right to her, Harry, they're going to escape!"

"I- what? What are you talking about, Neville?"

"Come on! I had to leave Lestrange unguarded in order to help you. There was no one else. And we just sent Malfoy right over to her. As soon as she's released, they'll be able to flee. There are hardly any Aurors in here and most of the Order is out, rounding up the remaining Death Eaters. Who, let me remind you, are here! We're no match for them!"

"Oh," said Harry stupidly. "Oh!" he repeated, fully understanding. "Let's go!" They sprinted across the room, but Malfoy saw them coming and shouted, "Diffindo!" breaking the chains that held Bellatrix to her chair. He threw her a wand and once again shouted a spell.

"Morsmordre!" A skull flew out of his wand, a snake protruding from its mouth. The Dark Mark hovered over the room and the Death Eaters that were still fighting ran to the exits, throwing hexes over their shoulders as they went.

"The Dark Mark must have been a signal," said Neville glumly. He couldn't believe that Bellatrix had escaped yet again. He and Harry had celebrated together that night, the night when they had first gotten the news. The news that Bellatrix Lestrange had been captured and that she was awaiting trial at the Ministry. He remembered thinking that it was finally almost over. Lord Voldemort was gone and Bellatrix Lestrange was going down with him. He and Harry had been so happy that night. The two people that they hated most in the world were gone. The two people who had ruined their lives and who had destroyed their parents. They were finally gone.

Now Neville was staring at the spot where Bellatrix had disappeared. Harry was also looking at the door. "Damn them," he said quietly.


	2. What Follows

"Damn them!" he said again, this time louder. Harry looked around him. It seemed to him that the Death Eaters had not been aiming to kill, for most of the people on the floor were groaning and starting to sit up. There were hardly any Death Eaters among the hurt. With a bolt of anger, Harry saw that the two Death Eaters that he had stunned, and the one Neville had tied up were gone; their fellow wizards must have released them before escaping.

Harry and Neville walked over to where Hermione, Ron, and Ginny were sitting. Ginny stood up and hugged Harry, then Neville. Hermione did the same. Ron gave each of them a pat on the back.

"I was so scared!" said Hermione shakily. "We saw Harry surrounded by all of those death Eaters and-."

Ginny interrupted her with a wave of the hand. "Neville, thank you so much for helping him. I- I don't think I can live without him," she gave Neville another hug and then wrapped her arms around Harry, staring into his eyes. "You'll find them Harry, you and Neville will."

He loved her. He loved her wide blue eyes and her long, wavy red hair. He loved her with so much power that he had not been able to propose to her months ago when he truly wished to. For he had been sure back then that he was going to die, and he hadn't wanted Ginny to feel like she owed him after his death. Even now he felt guilty about asking her, because he knew that the Death Eaters were still after him. But Ron had pointed him in the right direction (this had involved yelling, crying, and finally, understanding) and Harry had asked Ginny to marry him immediately following "The Final Battle". Harry could remember perfectly.

_ He walked up the hill and through the garden gate. The Burrow stood, tall as ever, but bearing the unmistakable signs of recent battle. The shutters were askew, and one of the many chimneys was cracked in half. There was scorch marks on the walls, and the front steps had a crater-sized hole blown threw them. Harry stopped, sadly looking at what had become of what had once been his second home. _

The back door banged open, and Ginny ran into his arms. "Harry!" she yelled "Oh Harry!" She had been at the Final Battle, fighting alongside aurors and members of the Order of the Phoenix, even though she was not of age. But Harry had not been able to see her then because he was very weak after fighting and had been carted off to St. Mungo's. He shuddered at the thought of the hospital; it was there that Ron and him had fought about his relationship with Ginny. Harry turned back to her. She had tears running down her face, and she was hanging on to him as if she'd never let go.

"Ginny! Ginny, it's ok! Everything is going to get better now! He's gone. Voldemort's gone, Ginny," he paused as she shuddered at the name that had caused the wizarding world terror for all these years. "But I realized something Ginny. I can't be afraid of what may or may not happen. I love you, I have always loved you, and we have to be together. It only hurts us both to be apart, and I don't want to hurt you anymore, I love you so much. I want to love you, I want to have a family with you, and I want to grow old with you. I want us to be together forever. Ginny, I realized that I'm hurting us both. We're meant to be together. Ginny, will you marry me? Will you be my beautiful bride?"

"Harry, of course I will! I'll love you; I've always loved you. I was worried about you, I'm so glad you're ok. And _that you've come to your senses," she added with a wry smile. "C'mon. Everyone's waiting for you. And we can make our announcement, all though I'm sure they already know. Extendable ears, you see." _

She grabbed his hand and had started to lead him up to the house. "Ginny, wait."

"Harry, you really need to rest. The only reason you're out of St. Mungo's is because I told them you would sleep for-"

Harry pulled her into a passionate kiss. She trembled in his hold, and Harry kissed her harder, and then let go. They smiled at each other and walked up the stairs, happy to see the people who were in the kitchen behind the door, alive and well.

Now Harry was once again entangled in Ginny's arms, only this time it was she who was holding him. She knew how much Harry hated Bellatrix Lestrange, and she knew it must have been killing him to see her escape again. Harry knew that Bellatrix was to Neville what Voldemort had been to him: a torment, his family's murderer, and a known enemy. Ginny knew that Harry couldn't stand seeing the ones he loved get hurt, and Neville was certainly hurting.

"I'm going to go check on everyone else," said Harry suddenly. He walked to the front of the room, observing the scene that was playing out in front of his eyes. Neville followed and stood next to him.

Ginny smiled at the pair of them. Neville had looked up to Harry for as long as she could remember. Harry had always awed him. But Neville did not know that Harry felt the same way about him. Harry had always looked to Neville as an equal. Both of their parents had been lost in the "Dark". Harry could identify with him. Ginny knew that their friendship would be a major factor in their healing, for both of them had been hurt by a common beast: You-Know-Who and his followers.

Harry looked at the wounded, making sure none of his close friends were among them. Most of the members of the Order of the Phoenix were only nursing minor wounds, much like Ron, Hermione, and Ginny. Harry then checked over the government officials and the members of the Wizengamot. Everyone seemed okay, although one old man was bleeding heavily from his head.

"Hang on" said Harry loudly. "Where's Tykan Smidgskin? He's not here. Do you think that the Death Eaters took him? Or that maybe he went after them?"

"No Harry," said a quiet voice. Harry spun around and saw Remus Lupin leaning against a wall, looking tired but otherwise all right. "Smidgskin let them in," he continued, calm as ever. "I heard him and Nott, they were laughing about it. He's a Death Eater, Harry. He and Bellatrix were play-acting. I'm sure they thought it was hilarious that we thought this was a real trial, while they knew that Lucius would be coming through the door at any minute," he added angrily.

"No, that can't be right. Even if he were acting, his mind would still tell us what he was really thinking. I read his thoughts. He was thinking about his muggle-born wife and their half-blood children during the trial."

"Harry, Voldemort invented one last spell the day before you defeated him. Mens mentis contego. It is a shield charm for the mind. If you had actually said 'legilimens', then you would have heard his true thoughts. But with the shield charm the castor can have people hear what he wants them to hear. Ingenious, huh?"

"I can't believe this! Voldemort is _still _all-powerful. The Death Eaters continue to use his spells, and all of a sudden three very powerful Dark wizards are together, waiting to rid the world of good. I don't want to think about what Lucius Malfoy, Bellatrix Lestrange, and Tykan Smidgskin can do together on their own, but add in the Death Eaters and all they control, and it's going to be like Voldemort is still here. They're going to be unstoppable!"

"No. You can't start thinking like that Harry. They can be stopped, and they will be stopped. Everyone used to think Voldemort was unbreakable, and look what you did to him! You can do this Harry, you just need to believe."

Harry snorted. Lupin was holding him in too much esteem. He hadn't done anything that special. If he hadn't heard the prophecy…

"I know what you're thinking Harry." Harry was surprised to hear Neville speak; he had forgotten that he was there. "You're going to say that it was all just luck, like you did when you started the D.A, aren't you? You're going to say that if you had never heard the prophecy, then you wouldn't have prepared, and you would have died. But that's not true Harry. You're powerful. It shames me that you don't see that."

And Harry did feel very ashamed. Neville Longbottom, the forgetful boy from his childhood, was reprimanding him. Neville used to be frightened by the thought of speaking out loud, and here he was, not holding anything in. Neville had changed, and it was time Harry started to change too. If the people really wanted to look up to him, he should at least try to make an effort. Harry sighed.

"Alright, let's get to work."


	3. How They Work

Hey Guys- wow, I am SO SORRY! I completely forgot that I was posting this story on this site. I had it completely posted on another site before this, and forgot that I was moving it on to this one. I know it's been months since I last posted… sorry! I've been looking this over a little bit and have realized that some of it is horrid- it was written over two years ago. I may rewrite it a bit if I have time, but for now I hope you enjoy this. Thanks to any of you who are still reading this, and I promise the wait wont be nearly as long next time. I'm going on vacation though so the next chapter probably wont be up for another week and a half or so. Thanks for reading!

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Bellatrix Lestrange sat in an armchair in front of the fire. Behind her Lucius Malfoy was pacing the room, and Tykan Smidgskin sat at a desk, writing something on a piece of paper.

"I am the New Dark Lord, and you are my Lady," Lucius said suddenly. He could not believe that it had happened at last. Harry Potter had finally defeated the Dark Lord, and Lucius was going to take his place as ruler. Bellatrix would rule alongside him, and death and destruction would follow in their wake.

Lucius remembered the night when it had all started, the night when he and Bella had begun their dynasty. It was the final battle, and people were fighting everywhere. Death Eater against auror. Death Eater against member of the stupid Order of the Phoenix. Brother vs. brother. Father vs. Son. It was all the same. The fighting went on for hours, no one knowing what was to be the outcome, no one knowing who would win. The Dark or the Light. Evil or Good. Lord Voldemort, one of the most powerful wizards of all time, or Harry Potter, a mere boy, only 17 years in age.

Lucius remembered meeting Bellatrix in the middle of the battle, amongst dueling witches and wizards. They walked up to each other and, without saying a word, walked off together in search of Rodolphus Lestrange, Bellatrix's husband. They found him, dead, lying on the trodden ground.

His death was not a great loss, however. He had always been a weak link. Lucius and Bella had walked off without a second thought. In fact, his death ended up being a great advantage. Bellatrix was no longer married. She was free to be with Lucius. There was still one thing stopping them though: Narcissa.

Dumbledore's Order had gotten Rodolphus out of their way, but Narcissa was still a problem. They had a plan though. A plan that would be put into action this very night. Lucius willed the time to go faster. And it did.

Lucius and Bellatrix were in the Master Bedroom of the Riddle Mansion. Lucius helped her into a black robe, before putting his own on. Together, they pulled on their hooded, faceless masks.

"This is it, Bella." Lucius whispered in her ear. He was standing behind her, his arms wrapped around her stomach. She let him hold her there, as they stared out of the huge window and into the night. "In a few hours time, it will just be you and me."

Bellatrix sighed and turned to face her lover. "Do you mean it, Lucius? Do you mean what you say when we lie together at night, mean it when you tell me 'I love you'?" She searched his eyes and turned away. She knew she would never get an answer. She loved him so much; she just couldn't let go. But she knew he would never return the feelings. At least not to the same extent as she. Lucius was incapable of love, only lust. Fire burned in her eyes and rage flew about her body. Bellatrix wanted someone to blame, someone to release all of her anger upon. And she knew just the person. "Let's go."

They arrived at Malfoy Mansion a few minutes later, after a quick apparition.

"Lumos," Malfoy whispered before slowly walking up the stone pathway. Bellatrix ignited her own wand and quickly followed. Lucius led the way in and through the house, leading right up to the bedroom that he had once called his own. He hesitated a moment, but then quietly turned the handle and creaked open the door. Narcissa sat upright in her bed, alerted to the intruders in her home by the powerful spells her husband had placed there long ago. The spells that her son had secretly updated only recently.

But Lucius and Bellatrix had expected this, and already had their wands trained on the unfortunate woman. They could have prevented her from waking if they had wanted to, of course, but they decided to have a little fun instead.

"Lucius?" Narcissa called out in a shaky voice.

Lucius narrowed his eyes. She wasn't supposed to know it was him. Not yet, anyway. 

"Lucius?" she asked again. "Wh-what what are you doing?"

"C'mon, let's do it, Lucius."

"Bella? Is that you? What are you doing here? Lucius? What's going on?"

"Honey, you know what we work for, don't you?" Lucius asked smoothly, his voice shaking with excitement and false kindness. "The re-instatement of Purebloods in Power? The elimination of Mudbloods? You know how important this is. You know that sacrifice is the only way to achieve it."

"Ye-yes," Narcissa replied. "But I've done some thinking and-"

"In time you'll understand. We're doing this for the continuation of our kind."

"In time I'll-?"

"Oh yes," said Lucius wickedly, "that's right. You have no time, do you? For after death, time stops. You stop. Everything stops," he sneered. "Well then, I hope death treats you well." He raised his wand.

"Noooooo!" Screamed Narcissa and Bellatrix together. Lucius, expecting Narcissa's outburst but not Bella's, turned to face his new lover.

"Let me do it," she panted gleefully. "Let me kill her."

"Bella. Lucius. Please."

Bellatrix's soulless, sunken, cold, gray eyes met her sister's bright, tear-stained, blue ones. Narcissa searched her sister's eyes, pleading for mercy. She never found it.

"Avada Kedavra!" A jet of green light shot from Bellatrix's wand and hit Narcissa on the chest. As she fell gracefully backwards onto the bed that she had once shared with her handsome husband, her sister collapsed onto the stone floor, unmoving.


End file.
